J/Teams Enjoy Brilliant Chester Race Week!

(Chester, Nova Scotia)- Competitors from across Canada and the Eastern Seaboard descended upon the picturesque fishing village of Chester, Nova Scotia for Canada’s largest keelboat regatta – Chester Race Week, sailed from August 14th to 17th.

Under variable conditions that included light air, fog and medium air with brilliant sunshine along with the 183' Fidelis anchored in the inner harbour in Chester, 133 yachts competed in this years running of Chester Race Week.

The Alpha Distance 1 class championship at this years Chester Race Week was tough sledding for many.  Taking third was Chester YC's Dave Connolly onboard the J/111 STAMPEDER.

In Alpha Distance 2 division,  Mark Surrette's J/111 BLAST finished second in class.   Sailing photo credits- Tim Wilkes (timwilkes.com) & Steve Jess (stevejess.com)   For more Chester Race Week sailing information

J/Teams Lead Lake Ontario 300

(Port Credit, ONT, Canada)- The weekend of the "Great Lakes" major offshore races, the Chicago-Mac and LO300, were primarily characterized by the fact that a massive High pressure area was squashed over the entire Great Lakes, acting somewhat like the Atlantic and Pacific Highs that wobble around-- they generally produce little or no wind near the maximum area of pressure.  While the Mac Racers had their longest race on record, it may also be said that LO300 sailors shared a similar experience.

In some respects, the Lake Ontario 300 Challenge, the premier offshore race on Lake Ontario, provided even more challenging scenarios than their Mac counterparts as they circumnavigated Lake Ontario.  The Main Duck Island course of 300nm saw tops boats finishing just as some of the fleet in the shorter 190nm Scotch Bonnet course were finishing, too!

Nineteen J/Teams sailed the race but not all finished as the rate of attrition was nearly as high as it was for the Mac Race on Lake Michigan.  It was epic, slow going as well for the Lake Ontario sailors.

The IRC 1 again proved to be a dual between two J/Teams and two Farr teams.  Winning class was  John McLeod's J/133 HOT WATER and getting the short-end of the stick in fourth place was the J/111 SURVENANT (skippered by a Quebec quartet of Marcel Cote, P Bernier, C Boulet, N Cote and Y Dion).   For more Lake Ontario 300 sailing information

J/111 Owners Simply Love Their Boats!

(Chester, Nova Scotia)- Recently, we received a wonderful note from a long-time Canadian J/24 sailor from the past- Dave Connolly.  He just started sailing his new J/111 STAMPEDER this past 2012 summer in Chester, Nova Scotia at Chester Yacht Club.  Dave had this to say,

"We sailed a J/24 out of Toronto in the early 80's and I ran the Canadian J/24 Class association for several years. In 1986, I was moved to Calgary where there is really no water so we sold the boat and essentially gave up sailing!  When I decided to retire early last year, one of the first things I did was order a boat through Jim Snair to get back into racing at our summer home in Nova Scotia.  We love the boat!  Our only complaint is that there aren't more J/111's in Nova Scotia.  It's great competitive sailing though with PHRF."  Here's a picture of them sailing and their happy, young crew!

J/111 BLAST Nova Scotia Update

(Halifax, Nova Scotia)- After a remarkable season of sailing in the Nova Scotia offshore circuit, the BLAST team from Halifax are still celebrating.  We also got a nice update from BLAST owner Mark Surrette-

"BLAST started the 2012 season with the objective of having a winning season while having a lot of fun. We put together a crew that was a composite of youth and veterans. We decided that having a pedigree in dinghy sailing was critical if one was to sail the J/111 to its potential. We put one of Canada's best Finn sailors on the helm and beside him an outstanding Laser/Byte sailor trimming main.  In the cockpit we had a couple of veteran big boat sailors along with a strapping 20 year old for power and the panel.  On the bow we had a veteran of dozens of big boat campaigns matched with an outstanding mastman from a Swan 56.  Navigation and tactics were handled by a couple of old veterans and we added in guests from Farr 40's and Soto 33's when we needed extra talent.  Without a doubt the crew was the highlight of the year and they galvanized into a cohesive group with great mutual respect very quickly.

The entire crew loved sailing the 111.  Responsive, quick, nimble with lots of gears and potential. Not much more to ask for.  One big learning we had was our ability to tweak the rig far more than we had thought.  We found a significant number of gears through rig tune and were able to turbo the boat for most any wind condition.

Our competitors during the season included another J/111, Soto 40, Farr 40, Farr 11, Mumm 30's, ID 35, C&C 115's, Tripp 40, J/120's, J/109, and a variety of other boats.  On each occasion we either won the race or had the ability to win.  The boat always performed. If we lost a race it was usually due to tactical decisions.

Our year unfolded much better than we had even hoped. BLAST won the RNSYS Opening Regatta, Chester Race Week and most importantly the Prince of Wales Regatta.  The Prince of Wales is the oldest trophy in North America--- even older than the America's Cup!

As our season grows to a close we are looking at what's next...?  Maybe Key West, Charleston, Block Island?  For sure the Halifax Race is on the agenda.  Alas, the winter planning begins as we look forward to some exciting J/111 class racing!

J/111 BLAST Wins Sailing Tri-fecta

(Halifax, Nova Scotia)- Hat's off to Mark Surrette's J/111 "Blast" for their remarkable season sailing in Nova Scotia's major offshore regattas this summer.  BLAST completed the perfect "tri-fecta" by winning the Prince of Wales trophy on Saturday at Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron (this trophy is older than the America's Cup trophy) and by placing second on Sunday they won the weekend.

Some of their competition included Farr 11's, a Soto 40, a J/120, 3 C&C 115's, a J/109 and 2 Mumm 30's.  All well-sailed boats and tough competition for the J/111.

Of note, Mark's team on BLAST also won Chester Race Week Alpha 1 class and the RNSYS Opener in June!

J/111s BLAST Chester Race Week

(Chester/ Halifax, Nova Scotia)- Chester Race Week started out slowly and with challenging weather, but ended with glorious sun and good wind. The competitors were happy with the race management and the evening parties, which didn't start until 9:30pm and were extremely well attended with 3 great local bands and wonderful Dark'n'Stormies at the bar!

The regatta featured a huge turn-out of J's ranging from the classic J/22s, J/24s, J/27s, J/29s, J/30s, J/35s and J/36 to J/92s, J/109, J/120s, J/111s, J/42 and J/44- a total of thirty J's in all, about 36% of the fleet of 92 handicap racers.

Leading the charge in the Alpha 1 Division were the two J/111s, BLAST (Mark Surette from Royal Nova Scotia YS) and STAMPEDER (Dave Connolloy from Chester YC).  BLAST managed to pull off a strong series counting six 1sts, a 2nd and 3rd to finish with 11 pts net, well clear of the next boat by ten pts!  STAMPEDER sailed a very nice series to collect a 7-2-2-3-6-2-5-6 for 33 pts net to grab fourth in their division.

In the Alpha 2 Division top dog was the famous J/92 POOHSTICKS (Colin Mann from Lunenburg YC), pulling off a 7-1-6-6-3-4-5 for consistent finishes to grab fifth in their division.  Finishing just behind were the J/35s and J/36s, most all suffering from a controversial second race DSQ factored into their scores!

In Bravo 1 Division the J/30 FLUX (Jordan MacNeil RNSYS) sailed a consistent regatta, garnering a 5-3-4-5-scp-1-4-2 for a net of 24 pts, finishing 4th by virtue of losing a tie-breaker for 3rd overall.  Johnny Wynacht, Canadian J/24 and J/29 National Champion sailed the first J/70 in Nova Scotia, finishing a credible 6th in their first outing with a slow start, but rapid finish-- scoring 9-9-6-7-1-4-3-8 for a 38 pts net, just 12 pts from the podium.  Not bad for the first day sailing the J/70 and not knowing which strings to pull first!

In Bravo 2 Division the J/30 GROOVIN (Greg Hammond) finished second with a consistent record of 4-4-3-1-2-2-5-1 for 17 net pts.  The J/22 CHEAP THRILL (Karen Fowler) was sailed fast by her lady helmsman, gathering a respectable (and very fast) 2-2-4-7-dnc-6-4-6 for 31 net pts.  Other than her DNC, Karen would have easily factored into the top three!

In the Distance 1 Division the J/120s performed brilliantly, with the J/120 BRILLIANCE (Richard Calder from RNSYS) scoring a 4-3-1-1 for 9 pts net to handily win their division.  Fourth was the other J/120 BLACK PEARL (Ross Leighton from RNSYS) with a 3-6-7-2 for 18 pts net.

In Distance 2 Division the J/109 WISC (Paul Rafuse from RNSYS) sailed beautifully to get 4-1-7-4 to finish with 16 pts net, good enough for 2nd in their division.  Also sailing well was the gorgeous J/42 CASTANEA (Paul Conrod from RNSYS) that managed a tally of 2-6-3-7 to net 18 pts, just 2 pts off 2nd.  Close racing, indeed, in this group of fast cruiser-racers!

Finally in the two J/One-Design divisions you have a literal wolf-pack of J/24s and J/29s sailing, neither fleet was won in a runaway.  In fact, the regatta outcome hung in the balance of the last race or two for both fleets!  In the J/24s, it was Greg Blunden on ADRENALIN RUSH that won a tiebreaker over Hamblin's JAMMIN. Blunden's `-5-3-1-1-3-2 for 12 pts net won on 1sts over Hamblin's 9-1-2-2-3-2-2 for 12 pts, too.  Third on the podium was decided by yet another tie-breaker!  "Holy Tie-breaker Hell" said Robin to Batman.  How can this be?  Ross Romney's RUSH HOUR managed to score a 6-6-1-4-2-5-4 for 22 pts and Ted Murphy's JUVENILE DELINQUENT tallied a 4-7-4-5-4-4-1 for the same 22 pts, but lost.  The nod went to Ross's RUSH HOUR crew to fill out the 3rd spot on the podium.

In J/29 World, with even more on the line with the recent J/29 North Americans having been run nearly concurrently, it was going to be "local bragging rights" to see who could party hardest, go the fastest, sail the smartest to win this division!  In the end, it was pretty remarkable to see Andrew Childs' team on SILVER WOMAN top the 29 charts with a spanking of the class- a 1-1-4-4-2-1-3 for 12 net pts laid down the gauntlet for all to match.  Next up was past champion SCOTCH MIST IV sailed by Chris Mac Donald with a 6-2-5-2-1-4-2 for 16 net pts.  Third sailing well were Matt & Scott Christie with a somewhat steady 3-3-3-5-8-2-1 for 17 net pts (imagine what might have happened had they not had to toss an 8th!).  Fourth was the Williams/ Matthews crew on PARADIGM SHIFT and 5th was Jim Mason's SATISFACTION.  Sailing photo credits- Heather McGuire/ Tim Wilkes - timwilkes.com   For more Chester Race Week sailing information

J/Fest @ Chester Race Week

(Chester (Halifax), Nova Scotia)- This year's Chester Race Week that is sailing from August 15th to 18th will again feature an enormous turn-out of J's ranging from the classic J/22s, J/24s, J/27s, J/29s, J/30s, J/35s and J/36 to the modern J/92s, J/109, J/120s, J/111s, J/42 and J/44- a total of thirty J's in all, about 36% of the fleet of 92 handicap racers.

Yacht racing has been a major summer sport in Chester for well over 150 years. Its roots were planted in the mid-19th century when the fishermen raced each other to markets in Halifax or New England. As sailors and fishermen have done forever, they loved to get together and talk shop. Sailing races for pleasure and bragging rights was inevitable. As the gatherings and races occurred more regularly, the Annual Fishermen’s Regatta was born. The regatta was a show case for locally built boats of different designs, as well as for sailing skills.

The first documented regatta was in 1856. It is reported to have been attended by 3,000 people who participated in a parade, amusements, land races as well as the sea races. In 1858 a rowing race for ladies was added and a dance took place at the Mulgrave Inn which had been hosting guests from Europe, US and Canada since 1820. In 1860 the press reported the regatta pleasures were “enhanced by a large party consisting of 150, accompanied by the city band, who arrived in the steamer ‘Neptune’ from Halifax”. In 1885 the two day regatta had boats from Mahone Bay, Lunenburg as well as from the two Tancooks. The big excitement was a circus which featured a hand cranked Ferris wheel on the parade ground. According to the Lunenburg newspaper, the 1888 Annual Regatta attracted 2,000 spectators who were treated to “the closest and most exciting match of its kind ever witnessed in the South Shore”.

After Chester YC was established in 1902, it became the focal point for racing. Charter member Ned Fader remembers, “Citizens donated prizes: 100 pounds of sugar, a barrel of flour, maybe a little cash. A boat crew could get a wonderful view on life for a dollar ... best of ale, fifty cents a gallon, good rum at one dollar a quart. They were all good God-fearing people, but they did not let it spoil their lives too much.” Later, as the renamed "Chester Race Week" evolved, the competition between Chester yachts and those of the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron have become a great cause for celebration to gather together each summer for some fun, frolic and spirited competition and sailing around the gorgeous bays and islands off Nova Scotia.

So far, the weather forecast of westerly winds 8-15 kts from Wednesday to Saturday means the fleet may be treated to some good racing, if not some crazy weather (often the norm in these parts with fog, thunderstorms, rain, wind, hail and even lots of sun-- all in the same day)!  Leading the charge in the Alpha 1 Division are the two J/111s, BLAST (Mark Surette from Royal Nova Scotia YS) and  STAMPEDER (Dave Connolloy from Chester YC).  In the Alpha 2 Division are a trio of J/35s that include SUMROO (Gary Sullivan from RKYC), J-HAWK (Thane MacDonald from Chester YC) and WHISTLER'S AIR (Richard Oulton RKYC); as well as the J/36 VELOS-ITY (David Morgan from RKYC) and the famous J/92 POOHSTICKS (Colin Mann from Lunenburg YC).  In Bravo 1 Division are the J/29 HAKUNA MATATA (J Wood from LYC) and the J/30 FLUX (Jordan MacNeil RNSYS).  In Bravo 2 Division are the dynamic duo of the J/30 GROOVIN (Greg Hammond) and the J/22 CHEAP THRILL (Karen Fowler).  In the Distance 1 Division are a J/44 AKUBRA (Reg Goodday from RNSYS) and a triumvirate of J/120s including BRILLIANCE (Richard Calder from RNSYS), GRAND CRU (Mike Kennedy from host CYC) and BLACK PEARL (Ross Leighton from RNSYS).  In Distance 2 Division are the J/42 CASTANEA (Paul Conrod from RNSYS) and the J/109 WISC (Paul Rafuse from RNSYS).  Sailing the Cruiser 1 Division is the J/27 INCORRIGIBLE skippered by Sam Lamey of Chester YC.

Finally in the two J/One-Design divisions you have six J/29s sailing, including COLMONELL (Matt & Scott Christie), JONEFORTWO (Ron Switzer), PARADIGM SHIFT (Williams/ Matthews), SATISFACTION ( Jim Mason), SILVER WOMAN (Andrew Childs), SCOTCH MIST IV (Chris MacDonald).  And there are four J/24s racing, including HIGH STRUNG (David Cobbett), OUT OF THE BLUE (John McSheffery), WAVE RUNNER and JUVENILE DELINQUENT (Ted Murphy).   Sailing photo credits- Heather McGuire   For more Chester Race Week sailing information

J/111 Wins Nova Scotia Opener

(Halifax, NS) - The Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron celebrates its 175th year this season and the Opening Regatta was run in bright sunshine and breezes from 12-18 knots.

Racing in the A1 fleet was the J/111 BLAST sailing against a Farr 11m, a Soto 40, a Farr 40, a 1D35 and two Mumm 30's. When the weekend ended, BLAST sailed by Mark Surrette's crew finished in 1st place.

John Whynacht sailed his J/24 STICKY FINGERS to a 1st in class while John Heseltine's few onboard J-ZEUS II-9 won the very competitive J/29 class.  LULA, a J/22 finished 2nd in B class.

Please note, in August, the Lunenburg Yacht Club will be hosting the North American J/29 Regatta!

J's Sail Fast, Epic Swiftsure Race

J/109s Crush Juan de Fuca, J/80s Win Inshore
(Victoria, BC)-  This year's running of the "Swiftsure" was another epic, challenging race, with all types of weather thrown at the sailors as they criss-crossed the Straits of Juan de Fuca seeking advantage over their fellow competitors.  For many the race really starts once they past "Race Rocks", a symbolic, but not official mark of the course. The iconic black and white stripped lighthouse is the divide between the Juan de Fuca strait and the coastal waters off Victoria and it’s where the true strategy and tactics of Swiftsure begin. The sailors then face open ocean swells, stronger currents, and hopefully, more wind. On the return trip back to Victoria, Race Rocks is the “almost there” point when the city lights of Victoria come into view.

Unusually, the weather conditions were close to what the Canadian weather services were predicting-- a steady wind filling in from the West with a high-wind warning for the Strait of Juan de Fuca with winds in excess of 25-35 knots overnight.  Remarkably, they got this forecast and more, some sailors reporting gusts to 40 knots and breaking waves.

The race started off nicely enough, sunny, light winds, with the current pushing the fleet towards the first turning point, Race Rocks.  Thereafter, with a strong ebb, the top teams sailed upwind into the Northwesterly breeze playing large shifts and staying in the middle of the Straits to take advantage of a strong ebb current pushing the fleet to their faraway turning marks.  Most of the fleet ended up on the western shore about halfway up the Olympic Peninsula (that wild place where the famous "Sasquatch" man/animal lives).  By midnight, most of the fleet in the Straits were sailing in 20+ knots of breeze and by morning many were sailing downwind under spinnakers flying down the waves and trying to avoid a massive broach or "sending it down the mine" in a submariner's dive into the trough ahead.

In the classic Swiftsure Race division that goes out of the Straits of Juan de Fuca for 139 nm- the 24 boats participating from the start to Swiftsure Bank and return had to beat the "wind shutdown" that often happens at the opening of the Straits.  The big boats made it, the small boats didn't.  In the end, the gorgeous J/160 JAM sailed by John McPhail finished 5th in Class I and 6th overall.  And the speedy lightweight flyer, the J/125 WARRIOR skippered by Greg Constable finished 2nd in Class 2 and 8th overall!

The popular Cape Flattery Race division that goes for 103 nm had 75 boats going from the start to Neah Bay and return.  In the Unlimited Class, the J/145 DOUBLE TAKE sailed by Tom Huseby (his second J/145!) finished 3rd in class and was not far behind the leaders for the top of the podium.

The successfully campaigned J/122 ANAM CARA (Tom Kelly- from Portland YC in Oregon) sailed an incredibly good Cape Flattery Race despite breaking their boom in a 40 knot gust and gybe-broach downwind in the Straits with all the laundry flying!  Reports Bob Ross who was a crew member aboard ANAM CARA, "we were winning our class boat-for-boat and on corrected time with about 40nm to go to the finish, when we tried to do an 'inside gybe' on the A3 spinnaker down big waves and a big puff.  Broke our boom and broached.  Not a good idea.  It took awhile to wrestle in the mainsail after taking down the chute.  We proceeded in under a smaller chute and jib to the finish-- quite an amazing and unexpected outcome to get 2nd in Class and 2nd Overall!"  Always a top contender in class, and past winner, was the J/120 TIME BANDIT (Robert Brunius), sailing a great race to finish 4th in class and 6th overall.  Sailing in their inaugural offshore race was the new J/111 ADALGISA (Lynn Adkins), sailing to a 5th in class and 11th overall!

In the Cape Flattery Heavy division, the J/46 RIVA sailed by Scott Campbell sailed a great race and managed to finish 2nd in class and 4th overall.  Just behind them was the J/37 FUTURE PRIMITIVE sailed by Ron Mackenszie getting a 4th in class and 6th in fleet.

The Juan de Fuca Race division that goes for 80 nm had 44 boats sailing from the start to Clallam Bay and return to the finish off Victoria's waterfront.  The J/109 teams simply cleaned house.  Winner in class and overall in the Juan de Fuca Heavy Division was DIVA (Jim Prentice) followed in second by TIPPY (Peter McComb) and 4th was JEOPARDY (Ed Pinkham).

In the Inshore Racing along the waterfront, the much vaunted battle between SWISH and JOYRIDE, a pair of J/80's, saw SWISH beating JOYRIDE by just under a minute on a 22 nm course with a wind ranging from 3 to 10 knots all day long.  Elapsed time for this pair was about 5 hours and 10 minutes.  As a result, in the Battle of the Sexes, Commodores (men) vs. Commodores Wives (women), the boys prevailed.  Congratulations to the Commodores from Royal Victoria Yacht Club (Jeremy Smith), Royal Vancouver Yacht Club (Guy Walters) and Seattle Yacht Club (Chuck Lowry) that raced SWISH.  And, "good on ya gals" to their wives- Tara Smith, Barbara Picton and Pam Lowry that raced JOYRIDE to a solid second in the large class of competitors!  For more Swiftsure Race sailing information on Facebook   For more Swiftsure Race sailing information

J/111 Atlantic Boating News Test

(Halifax, Nova Scotia)- The J/111 speedster has now been tested in a number of different venues and is proving to live up to its billing as a fun, fast, easy-to-sail boat by all types of sailors- experienced offshore sailors, to local club racers, to shorthanded sailors wishing to sail single or double-handed.  The 111s successes across a variety of handicapping systems in a wide-range of weather comes as a pleasant surprise, again proving that a good all-round design that can sail upwind, reaching and downwind should do well in the hands of both the world's best as well as the local club sailor.  Recent events run under PHRF, IRC, ORR have proven the 111 to be competitive, a comforting factor to know that "beer-can" racing will always be fun locally while one-design sailing events grow regionally, nationally and internationally.

To date, 111s have managed to win Key West Race Week PHRF 1 Class with a J/105 crew from Ohio steering it for the first time in their lives in light to medium conditions; place 2nd in the BMW Auckland Regatta against highly modified, monster-garaged Kiwi boats under PHRF-NZ TOT system; cruise into 2nd in class and 3rd overall in the renowned Cabo Race from Newport Beach, CA to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, a 600nm romp down the coastline sailing ORR handicap; and this winter prove in both the Solent, England and in San Francisco, CA that under IRC at 1.093 the J/111 is capable of being competitive and grab its fair share of silverware- from the Three Bridge Fiasco to the Solent's Winter/Spring Series.

J/111s are not only demonstrating they're fun and fast to sail, they've got the comfortable cockpit, sweet accommodations and standing headroom to fulfill the needs of the most demanding weekend club racers- your friends and family.  Yet, for the thrill-seekers who appreciate extraordinary performance and the strength and robustness to qualify for ISAF Offshore Certification specifications for offshore sailboats (the first sailboat to do so globally), it's nice to know it can go around the cans or fly offshore against some of the world's best sailboats.  Read more about what sailors in Nova Scotia, Canada discovered when they test sailed the J/111 for the first time off Halifax, NS- it's an article in Nova Scotia's Atlantic Boating News.  For more information on the J/111 one-design speedster sailing review and boat test.  

J/111 Owners Having Fun!

San Francisco Bay Debut + The Ultimate 111 Sailing Experience (So Far)

(San Francisco, CA)- First, Erik Simonson reports, "Sometimes good things come to those who wait. In this case, the arrival of hull number 4 off the J-Boats Production line to the West Coast has proven to be the case. Frank Slootman has enjoyed his J-90 immensely, it’s lines, rating and performance did all he could have hoped. What it was lacking was accommodations and a little luxury which would make his better half happy....The rumors of a newer production racer-cruiser from J-Boats had begun, which were right in the target range of 36-38 foot. After talking with J-Boats and reviewing the drawings, Frank was convinced the boat would "provide the thrills of a pedigree along with some of the creature comforts" he sought. Soon, SANTA delivered a new sleigh to the Slootman residence in the form of INVISIBLE HAND fresh from Bristol R.I."   Read more, see more photos and watch the video here on Erik's H2OShots.com site about Frank's INVISIBLE HAND interview.

Second, what may surprise a few sailors out there, perhaps, is that a 72 year old Canadian (actually, a Nova Scotian) who's sailed a variety of J's over time is taking delivery of 111 #23, after an exhilarating, adrenalin-pumping, get yer "ya-yas-out", 20+ plus knot ride on 111 #5.  Really?  Skeptics be damned.  Anyone of any age can sail the 111 with finger-tip control and feel confident sailing it upwind or downwind, light air or with breeze on.  Check these videos out.  Real People.  Real Men.  Real Women.  Real Fun.  Exotic, too, in French and English!  The Ultimate 111 Sailing Experience in Nova Scotia.

  

Just A Walk In The Park- 111-style!

(Halifax, Nova Scotia- Oct 30)- Leave it up to our Canadian friends to push the envelope and have some fun on their new 111.  On a spectacular cool, fall weekend, the Nova Scotians decided to mimic what the 55 knot kite-boarders were achieving in the Ludertiz Speed Challenge in Africa and do their own version- the Halifax 111 Speedster Experience! 20+ knots! The photo here is no joke, the 25 foot chase boat had a hard time keeping up with the 111 flying downwind.  It's 111 #5 off Halifax in a northwester, gusts to 25 TWS in flat water. Boat speed was a sustained 15-19 knots downwind; bursting to 20+ knots.  110 sq m asym and reefed main.  Basically, it was a bunch of friends and potential owners having fun, no one was pushing the envelope.  Just going for a "walk-in-the-park" 111 style! Why wasn't anyone hiking?  Because everyone wanted to drive!  See the great video taken by Jim Snair and friends.